Bobcats Claim Conference Title in Double Overtime

Nov 05, 2007

Mount Olive, NC--Lee Squires' goal in the 107th minute broke a
scoreless tie and gave Lees-McRae a conference championship as the
top-seeded and nationally second-ranked Bobcats posted a double
overtime 1-0 victory over No. 2 seed Queens in the championship
game of the 2007 Conference Carolinas Men's Soccer Tournament
Sunday at Mount Olive. Sophomore Lee Squires (Sheffield, England)
was named Most Valuable Player of the tournament.

A defensive battle, Lees-McRae (19-1-1) held a 4-1 shot
advantage over Queens in the first half, and neither team got
another shot off through the first 26 minutes of the second half.
The Bobcats' best opportunity in the second half came on a direct
kick from 22 yards out, but Berin Boracic's (Orlando, FL) shot went
over the crossbar.

Squires almost ended the match with 55 seconds left in the first
overtime on a 15-yard attempt from the left side of the box. Queens
goalkeeper Dan Williams (Kingwood, TX) dove to his left and got a
hand on the ball to deflect it wide of the post. The Royals
prevented a shot attempt on the ensuing corner kick.

Both teams renamed scoreless in the first overtime, forcing the
game into a second fifteen minute sudden death playoff period to
decide the Conference Carolinas Tournament Champion.

Logan Berrier (Easton, MD) nearly gave Queens the win less than
two minutes into the second overtime, but Lees-McRae goalkeeper
Sean Paradise (North Point, FL) made a save on Berrier's shot.

Then it was LMC's Dale Parker (Worksop, England) setting up the
winning goal, winning a ball at midfield and playing it all the way
to Boracic just above the box. Boracic chipped the ball to his left
to Squires, who scored the game-winner at the 106:43 mark,
clinching the fourth conference championship overall for Lees-McRae
and the first since 2003.

Head Coach Chris Whalley commented,"This was a great game. I
felt we played well defensively. Lee (Squires) is a great player
and more importantly, a great person, and I'm happy for him scoring
the winning goal."

Lee Squires added, "All of a sudden, the ball was right in front
of me. I took the shot and I'm glad it went in. I didn't want to do
penalty kicks."

Lees-McRae outshot Queens 12-3 for the match. Williams had three
saves for the Royals, while Paradise recorded one save for the
Bobcats.

Lee Squires, who leads the Bobcats with 22 goals on the season,
was selected MVP for the tournament. Joining Squires on the
All-Tournament Team are four teammates: Sean Paradise, Johnny
Boynes (Worksop, England), Matt Lacey (Norwich, England) and Nathan
Wall (Des Moines, IA). Queens was represented by Williams, Will
Massey and Chad Pinnick.

While the conference tournament champion does not receive an
automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Championship,
Lees-McRae, ranked No. 1 in the Southeast Region, is likely assured
a tournament berth and may get to host the regional. Queens, which
entered the week tied at No. 4 in the region, is hoping for an
at-large bid.